"???"
Across from him, Mōryō was utterly stunned.
This Wood Release kid not only sensed the bell sealing Shion's power, but even slapped open the sealing barrier with one hand??!
That barrier was something even it could barely break!!
"Boy, I'll admit you're impressive, but both my soul and body have already been unsealed. Even if the previous priestess were resurrected, she wouldn't be my match!" Mōryō snapped out of its daze and shouted arrogantly.
It was a being from another world, possessing power that surpassed the entire shinobi world!
Shinju ignored its words.
After removing the bell from Shion, Shinju immediately used chakra to unblock her meridians.
The very first time he had seen Shion, he noticed that someone had placed a seal on her chakra.
And now, in order to seal Mōryō, it was time to undo that seal!
"Whoosh—"
In an instant, a pure white radiance burst forth from Shion's body!
Strange markings appeared on her face, her hair turned into dazzling gold.
She looked like a celestial goddess descending to earth, radiant beyond compare!
"With my full power unsealed, I can now merge with Mōryō… just like my mother once did, and seal him away…"
Feeling the surging power coursing through her body, Shion murmured to herself.
Shinju, standing beside her, fell silent at her words.
(||๐_๐)
Why did the priestess have to merge with Mōryō to seal it?
Wasn't that sacrifice way too extreme?
Thinking of this, Shinju raised his left hand, intricate sealing scripts appearing all across it.
Then he turned to Shion and said, "Give me your chakra."
Shion, who had been torn between sealing Mōryō and fusing with it, froze at Shinju's words.
But out of trust, she placed her hand into Shinju's…
Shinju grasped her hand with his right hand, drawing out the special chakra within her that was meant for sealing the demon.
Then, with his left hand inscribed with scripts, he quickly wove hand seals with both hands…
Seconds later, the seal was complete!
Shinju lifted his head, and his eyes instantly turned into the same dazzling gold as Shion's!!
From his left hand, an immense suction force erupted!!
Like lightning, the force latched onto Mōryō's body and instantly pulled its massive form straight into Shinju's palm!!!
Shion, Naruto: "?!!!"
Shion stared at Shinju's focused profile, her heart racing wildly again.
So powerful!!
This overwhelming sense of safety!!
With this man by her side, it felt like even if the sky collapsed, he would hold it up…
Very soon, Mōryō's connection to this world was completely severed—sealed within Shinju's palm!
Shion returned to her normal state, her eyes filled with disbelief.
(⊙o⊙)
She had spent her entire life training sealing techniques, all for the day she would seal away Mōryō.
But when the real battle came, not only had her sealing arts been useless, they even contributed to Mōryō's unsealing.
Instead, a shinobi who had never even faced Mōryō before today, sealed it in under a minute…
And most absurd of all—without any side effects!
"You… how did you do that?"
At last, Shion voiced the question in her heart.
Shinju generously explained: "It's simple. I analyzed the formation you used to bind Mōryō just now, made some adjustments, and modified it into a sealing technique…"
"Then, using your special chakra to execute the seal, I added eighteen extra safety seals to ensure that once it was trapped in my hand, it would never escape for the rest of its life…"
Naruto suddenly spoke up: "But what if you die someday, Shinju? What happens to Mōryō then?"
Shinju: "Why are you so good at jinxing people, huh?! (ꐦ ಠ皿ಠ) "
"But I already thought of that. I added a self-destruct failsafe to the formation."
"If I die one day, Mōryō goes down with me. ( ´◔‸◔`)"
With that, Shinju raised his left hand—the one now bearing the seal of Mōryō…
Because of the sealing mark, purple-black tattoo-like patterns spread across his left hand.
As the markings lit up, Shinju tried channeling his power toward the rampaging undead army outside—forcing them all to halt…
...
Land of Fire, border battlefield.
Konoha shinobi were locked in a life-and-death struggle against the invading undead army.
The battle was brutal, and Tsunade had summoned Katsuyu to heal every wounded ally on the field.
Inside the command tent, Shizune reported: "Tsunade-sama, there are too many injured. Our medical-nin are not enough."
"Then prioritize the critically wounded. We must save lives first, no matter what!" Tsunade ordered firmly.
But right after she spoke, the chaotic battle noises outside suddenly fell silent!
Curious, Tsunade lifted the tent flap and looked out, only to see that the undead soldiers had all stopped moving!
"Excellent! Looks like Shinju succeeded. That boy really didn't let me down!"
Realization struck, and Tsunade's heart surged with excitement.
On the battlefield, the news spread quickly, and Konoha shinobi raised their voices, chanting Shinju's name!
"Shinju!!"
"Shinju!!"
At the same time, a few informed shinobi whispered among themselves.
"Hey, did you hear? Shinju didn't leave Konoha on a mission this time. The higher-ups forced him out…"
"What? But wasn't he escorting the priestess from the Land of Demons?"
"You don't get it. That was just a coincidence!"
"I heard it's because he let Sasuke go back then. The higher-ups dredged it up again and kicked him out."
"Bullshit! He killed Danzo, and the village leaders felt threatened, that's why…"
"If that's true, then the higher-ups really played dirty this time."
"I heard Shinju rejected the Fifth Hokage's confession, so she sent him away…"
"Oi, that rumor's way too outrageous! (ꐦ ಠ皿ಠ) "
"Exactly, the one the Fifth Hokage loves is clearly me!!"
"Don't talk nonsense! The Fifth Hokage and I already secretly got our marriage papers from the Konoha registry! (′д｀σ)σ"
...
Elsewhere.
After halting the entire undead army, Shinju prepared to return to the Land of Demons with Shion to claim their reward.
Leaving the Shrine of the Land of Swamps, Shinju spotted Kakashi and the others outside.
"Yo, Kakashi-sensei, Asuma-sensei, and Ino, Shikamaru…" Shinju lifted his hand in greeting.
"Shinju-kun~"
Ino smiled brightly at him, then immediately turned her head to glance at Shion beside him!
Not to be outdone, Shion straightened her chest and glared back.
Where their gazes clashed, it was as if sparks crackled in the air!
"Women are such a drag," Shikamaru muttered helplessly.
Sai, however, with sketchbook and pen in hand, looked at Shion, then at Ino, and declared in solemn respect: "Ino guessed right. Judging by this scene, the priestess from the Land of Demons really does like Shinju. As expected, women understand women best."
After staring each other down for a while, Shion, with the advantage of being closest, quickly clung to Shinju's arm.
"Shinju, didn't you say you'd come with me to the Land of Demons to meet the daimyo? Let's go. ( ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )✧"